Winter Preparation, undercoated the celica, any other ideas? Options

[azian_advanced]

I had my car undercoated about 2 weeks ago. less than 5 days before our actual permanent snowfall began. i have on all season tires with a good amount of tread on them. i have my block heater plugged in when i'm at work but not at home (my parents say it's a waste of electricity and tell me to just warm-up the car earlier). i also have a mini heater that keeps the interior warm when i have the block heater plugged in too. i wash the car including the underbody and wheel wells every 5 days or so.

but what else can i do to keep the celica well maintained for the snowy and slippery streets? any suggestions?


here are some pics of the undercoat:










This post has been edited by azian_advanced: Nov 4, 2007 - 12:39 AM

[lagos]

wow thats pretty extreme. never seen anyone do that to their car.

[celicaST]

hmm ya never seen that done before. doesnt sound like a bad idea. i just try not to drive after they salt the roads, and since i hate washing my car in the cold, i just pay up and go to an automatic car wash that sprays the underside.

i wouldnt do that to my car though, if i were you i woulda just bought a beater for cheap and garage the celi. wonder how much weight that added.

This post has been edited by celicaST: Nov 23, 2005 - 3:36 PM

[azian_advanced]

i'm the youngest in the family of 5, and we each have our own cars. having a beater is out of the question because i don't have enough room to store another car. plus i need a winter car to get around (school, 2 part time jobs, and run occasional errands).

if this did add any weight onto the car, it would only be about 1/6 of the black asphalt coating (approx. 1.5 pounds) plus another quarter of the proform gravel guard (approx. 1.5 pounds) so all together 3 lbs.

i don't mind adding 3 lbs to the underbody to protect it from salt and other dirt that can cause and build up rust. we're known for our salty winter roads and extreme temperatures here so i need to be extra meticulous in the maintenance of my celi for this winter.

[azian_advanced]

oh, and if anybody's wondering how much it all costs... it cost $20 cdn (so $16 usd) for the can on the right and $30 cdn ($24 usd) for the one on the left. and there's enough to probably do about 4 or 5 cars.

[blu94gt]

I think you're overkilling with the block heater etc, especially the interior heater. just tough it out for the 2 minutes that it takes the car to warm up lol. My car sits out in the parking lot all the time, always cold, have to scrape the snow and ice off of it. I would say for winter change to a 5w30 oil, and just be ready for the worst snow. Maybe some snow tires depending on how bad the weather gets?

[Starcraftjunkie]

Hey man.. that looks nice. How much for you to do that to my car?

oh, and if anybody's wondering how much it all costs... it cost $20 cdn (so $16 usd) for the can on the right and $30 cdn ($24 usd) for the one on the left. and there's enough to probably do about 4 or 5 cars.

[Cutrara]

Red X

NM, looks good

This post has been edited by Cutrara: Nov 23, 2005 - 9:44 PM

[elvasoshexai]

hm.. if you take ur car to like krown don't they spray something on the underside of your car as well? i think that would work just as well as that undercoating rite?

[Valo666]

krown is more rust inhibiting, but u can get them to do undercoating too, but they r expensive. Ur local CND tire can du under coating with a good thick under coating for like $50 or so. My buddy got his civic undercoated for $55 with labour.

And for all of you who are asking if its a lil extream about azain's undercoating, im guessin u have never been 2 winnipeg durin the winter or have seen pics of it durin the middel of winter.

[Shea_K47]

my car came undercoated. as for the cold i just go warm it up a few minutes before i leave.
if there are 5 other cars at your house how come yours get to be in the garage? ...celis are just that good

[azian_advanced]

I think you're overkilling with the block heater etc, especially the interior heater. just tough it out for the 2 minutes that it takes the car to warm up lol. My car sits out in the parking lot all the time, always cold, have to scrape the snow and ice off of it. I would say for winter change to a 5w30 oil, and just be ready for the worst snow. Maybe some snow tires depending on how bad the weather gets?

well we get temperatures as low as -50 C (-58 F). it takes about 10 mins to warm up the car to its normal temp.

oil change to 5w30 is a good idea.. i may consider it on my next paycheque..

Hey man.. that looks nice. How much for you to do that to my car?

i'll have to find out exactly, but around $35 for the undercoat and $65 for labor... you interested??

my car came undercoated. as for the cold i just go warm it up a few minutes before i leave.
if there are 5 other cars at your house how come yours get to be in the garage? ...celis are just that good

my car came undercoated too but it seemed like throughout the years, some of it was starting to come off.

[Silver94CelicaOw...]

I've been considering doing some winterizing for my Celica too....Like maybe coating the wheel wells with stuff like you used that will prevent corrosion, and picking up a set of stock mudflaps somehow. Since mine is a daily driver including winter driving, I want to try and protect it as best as possible.....I even thought about maybe stopping by a friends shop that does automotive vinyl and maybe have him make me a protective vinyl covering for lower half of the body or something, just to keep the snow and salt off of it.

Of course I gotta raise it up an inch or two first, otherwise I'll be plowing the roads when it snows.

[elvasoshexai]

hm.. i think i should get my car rust proofed and under coated

[CanadaCelica]

krown is more rust inhibiting, but u can get them to do undercoating too, but they r expensive

Ya krown in more expensive, but I had them do myne last winter and i was impressed. They coat everything. They did under the entire car, wheel wells, everything under the hood, like firewall and stuff, inside my doors and rear seat panels, even the washer nozzles . Id say it’s worth the $100 CND, didn’t find any signs of rust at all this spring. Oh and they also wash your car after

This winter though i wont need to worry about salt and snow, i picked up a beater for that.

[elvasoshexai]

so they include the udnercoating for the 100 right? i heard u should do it twice a yr (or at least checked twice a yr to see if it needs to b reapplied)

[azian_advanced]

he have it here for $126 total.. and they call you up or notify you for a new application every year. but it's from another shop called ColorMelt, not Krown.

[95gtschick]

that looks awesome Gerald.

and yes, i can vouch for winnipeg winters... not cool!! it does NOT take 2 minutes to warm up a car to normal. takes at the MINIMUM 10 out here, usually cause it gets freakin cold over night!!! and yes, -50 celsius sometimes with the windchill it's that bad... not usually though... still is cold though!!

[Cutrara]

I need to winterize my car, too. I already put in my winter floormats, lol. What will the 5w30 do? Will it make it start easier because it's a lighter oil?

[elvasoshexai]

ya. the oil flows better cuz of lower viscosity or sumthin. sux when u hv an oil leak tho.. it'll just leak easier too